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ABOUT THE BOOK
NO SPOILERSGene Luen Yang teaches computer programming at Bishop O'Dowd High School in Oakland, and as a graphic novelist he is stuck. He has not started a new book since finishing his last one, and he is starting to worry he has run out of stories. When he keeps overhearing students talk about O'Dowd's varsity boys basketball team, he finally sits down with head coach Lou Richie, who lost the state championship as a player in 1988 on a disputed call and has never gotten back to the title as a coach. Lou tells him the 2014-15 team finally has what it takes, led by two stars who have been best friends since middle school, the towering and dominant Ivan Rabb and point guard Paris Austin. Yang decides to follow the team through their season for his next book, even though he has disliked sports his entire life. What starts as research into one basketball team turns into something much bigger, pulling in the personal histories of players Yang barely knows and a hundred years of the sport itself.
Free Battle of the Books questions for Dragon Hoops
SPOILERSEvery one of these has the same answer, and that is the point. In a real battle the question is read aloud with a dozen other books in play, and students have a few seconds to place it. Here is what a battle might ask about Dragon Hoops. Use them as a quiz, a trivia round, or BOTB practice.
Where in the book they come from
- Early in the book
In what book does a referee wipe out a go-ahead basket yelling, "No bucket! Offensive goaltending!"?
✓ Answer
Dragon Hoops by Gene Luen Yang
Lou Richie's shot rattled in at the buzzer of the 1988 state final and the arena erupted, until the whistle blew because a teammate's hand was near the rim. Lou calls it the most controversial call in the history of California high school basketball, and it haunts him for years.
- First half
In what book does a six-foot-seven center throw down the first dunk in women's college basketball?
✓ Answer
Dragon Hoops by Gene Luen Yang
Georgeann Wells of West Virginia University did it on December 21, 1984, in a small armory in front of maybe a hundred people. She had trained for years to get the ball over the rim, and for a few seconds that tiny crowd sounded a hundred times bigger.
- First half
In what book does an older sister swat away a shot yelling, "Get that crap outta here"?
✓ Answer
Dragon Hoops by Gene Luen Yang
Oderah and Arinze Chidom learned the game playing one-on-one in their backyard, and Oderah says the answer to who won was not even close. Their trash talk was constant, but the book insists the two of them do not just love each other, they respect each other.
- Second half
In what book does a Catholic school coach ask his Sikh player to lead the team prayer?
✓ Answer
Dragon Hoops by Gene Luen Yang
Jeevin Sandhu says the pregame prayer is not weird for him at all, since Coach Lou sometimes hands him the huddle. He also prays quietly in Punjabi during the national anthem before every game.
- Second half
In what book does a whole team chant a quiet teammate's name as he points along with a drumline?
✓ Answer
Dragon Hoops by Gene Luen Yang
While a local marching band performs between games in Springfield, Franklin Longrus starts pointing to the beat and Alex Zhao joins him, so the whole bench and the coaches start chanting for him. Alex has spent the book a step apart from his teammates, and this is the moment they pull him in.
- Near the end
In what book does a teacher tell a team at halftime that he has always hated sports?
✓ Answer
Dragon Hoops by Gene Luen Yang
Coach Lou puts the narrator on the spot in the locker room during the State final, and he admits he hated playing and found watching even more boring. Then he tells the players that watching them step onto the court anyway is what pushed him to take his own risk.
